[Tom]

Thanks Gil…

My wife uses the non-cellular Ipad 2 and I have posted with it as well with no problem. I do know that Ipad 1 folks do have a problem here.

Just upgrade and send Jon the bill!:)

[Tom]

Here’s a photo that almost shows the whole story. This is the transition at the top from the upslope to the garage floor.My coach on the left is fully raised at the front and the drive is at road height. If either was any lower the generator baffle would drag or get crushed. What it doesn’t show is that as the rear of the bus just enters the garage the nose is down so low on the driveway the rear bumper is as high as my hip. Mango Mike (the good looking guy) has the rear of his coach already in the garage and he has cleared the transition. This doesn’t really show the steepness of the driveway, but steep is not a problem as much as how to transition from level to steep. The mirrors on my coach are just below the garage floor level so I haven’t yet seen the garage floor at that point. The rear has to be in the opening before my mirrors are high enough to see the floor. I do need to see the floor so I don’t back into the pit. After 4 years of estimating I finally broke down and painted the white marks on the driveway to guide me in centered over the pit.

As to how to operate the level low all I can say is each converter has a different way to control leveling. Some use the Prevost system without modifications. Some use their own modified version, and some use the Prevost system with another system (such as HWH) as a supplement.

The important thing to understand is to place the control from the “road” or “drive” position into a manual position. Then when in manual, select the position you wish to control such as front, left rear, or right rear. Then on all systems there will be a switch or control that will allow you to raise or lower the position selected. Before any attempts are made to cross an area in which the coach has to be raised or lowered make certain the coach is where you think it is heightwise, and that it is going to stay there until you choose another position or restore it to the driving height.

If you anticipate the use of the level low practice using it. Understand that it takes time to raise or lower the coach. Also even if you do not plan on going places where you have to raise or lower the coach you need to learn how to do it anyway. That is how you level the coach in a campground, that is how you cross railroad tracks or some driveways without damaging the coach, and that is how you deal with preventing the rear from dragging when you come out of some driveways.

[Tom]

Jon:

Showing me is not as good as doing it for me, but it was worth a try.

I’ll take you up on the offer.

[Tom]

Cruise Airs work great when the coach is parked. Not necessarily so for highway use. The previous coach they did work very well when an OTR circuit breaker failed. But regardless they are less efficient for sure when in use on the highway.

Corey, I understand the difference between the engine driven OTR systems whether on a CC or a Prevost system. But there are a lot of folks for whatever reason going down the road with only driver’s air and one roof AC running off the inverter. I don’t know why they do that when they have some form of OTR, but they do.

[Tom]

[Tom]

A coach can maintain ride height with the tag raised if certain conditions are met. The coach does need to be well within the axle weight limits in the rear. You have to wait for max pressure to reach the air bags.

Both my 87 and 97 would eventually get the rear to ride height with the tag lifted. The 87 would actually get the tag about 3″ off the ground also. The tag axle on the 97 never actually got daylight beneath it regardless of how high the coach was raised in the rear. I think that was an issue related to the lift chambers.

It seemed to take forever for the coach to raise on both the 87 and 97.

On the 97, going by memory the steer was 14,000 and the drive and tag combined were about 32000. The two front air bags were carrying 7000 each and when the tag was lifted (actually was almost lifted) the four drive axle air bags were carrying 8000 each. It was not uncommon for some conversions of that vintage to have much more weight on the steer axle and proportionately less weight on the rear axles bringing the weight the steer air bags had to carry as much as 8000 pounds while the drives had to lift less than that. It is all about how the weights are distributed

I have not tried to do that with the current coach.

[Tom]

They should, but do not always. The air pressure is required to work against the spring in the 3 port Norgren valve which is trying to return the spool inside the valve to the normal position, which in that case is normally open meaning it is venting tag axle air bag pressure to atmosphere, while blocking air flow from the drive axle air bags. Since spring pressures can vary slightly and the internal friction of the valve can vary it is not uncommon to have one side of the coach drop before the other. Eventually they both drop as aux air pressure continues to drop.

When aux air pressure is applied in excess of the 30 to 35 PSI required, the valve goes to the position which maintains an open airway between the tag axle air bag and the drive axle air bags.

If an owner never intended to lift the tag axle the three port Norgrens in the rear could be eliminated and the tag and drive axle air bags could all be joined with a common air line. But because it is advantageous to lift the tag axle on occasion the purpose of the three port Norgrens is to block air flow from the drive axle air bags, dump tag axle air bag air and allow the tag axle lift chambers to lift up the tag axle.

All late model coaches have system logic that maintains the open air path between all the air bags regardless of aux system pressure, only dumping tag axle air while “locking in” drive axle air bag air when it is necessary to lift the tag.

[Tom]

Rick,

I did have a problem with a no drain condition on my front roof air . What I found was the drain hose was bent around a corner inside the air conditioner.

Access is gained by pulling down the ceiling panel so you inspect the condensation drain. To repair the extreme bend I purchased a plastic 90 deg tube to fit inside the hose.

I checked the other a/c units and did some rearranging of the drain lines. I used my portable $99.00 air compressor, dialed down the air pressure blowing out each line from inside the bus.

AL

[Tom]

Lifeline Batteries in person boys and girls, won’t get much better than that, so bring your questions for the experts.

[Tom]

We routinely send oil to the lab for analysis in aircraft engines. Most labs will inform you that you should analyize only with either a new or recently overhauled engine in order to establish a baseline; they do not advise to analyize oil from a high time engine. Additionally there are specific techniques for collecting a valid sample, mid way through the drain (not at the beginning or the end and certainly not from the drain pan), into a lab provided sampling bottle avoiding all outside contamination. These samples are usually collected (on airplanes) at 50 engine hour intervals; a report will be returned and anything out of norm will be shaded red with notations to re-analize the oil in 25 hours. The lab that we use will analyize any oil, from your lawn mower to your airplane and its roughly $500 for the report.

What we do on higher time engines, actually on all engines, is to cut the oil filter, remove the paper element which opens like an accordion and set it on plastic for a few hours to drain completely. We then look at the paper with a bright light, or by aiming the paper at the sun and look for metal chunks. Then we take a magnet to any metal found, chunks of metal that a magnet will collect, NO BUENO! A very small amount of metal is normal but chunks are not, and warrant further investigation. To that I might add that if metal is found, say in a bus engine, I would run it for another 500 miles or so and look again before tearing into the engine.

John

[Tom]

At Everglades until March 1st Rick. I do know where Pelican is located, see you there.

[Tom]

Hey Tom Hamrick,

We have the same engine 8V-92 DDEC II and Rays app with the Ipad works great for us.

[Tom]

They’re toast a long time before 13 years. I believe Michelin says 5-7. I lost a 4 year old.

[Tom]

Here is a current exerpt from FMCA’s Michelin tire purchase discount program:

Visit FMCA.com and login using your FMCA credentials to download

the instructions on how to purchase tires using the Family Motor Coach

Association Advantage Program account.

Check out the sample of prices for some common MICHELIN® RV Tires.*

Other RV tires are available through the program.

Tread Design Tire Size

Load

Range

MSPN FET

Net Invoice

Price

XRV 225/70R19.5 F 58916 $1.32 $351.94

XRV 245/70R19.5 F 67140 $5.48 $3528

XRV 235/80R22.5 G 87511 $116 $378.52

XRV 255/80R22.5 G 59634 $167 $476.91

XRV 305/70R22.5 L 93499 $40.92 $5868

XZE 225/70R19.5 F 81473 $1.32 $338.79

XZE 225/70R19.5 G 91043 $4.44 $357.62

XZE 245/70R19.5 H 75997 $13.61 $364.74

XZE 255/70R22.5 H 61737 $18.99 $469.56

XZA2 ENERGY 315/80R22.5 L 76184 $52.83 $586.18

XZA2 ENERGY 295/80R22.5 H 76807 $40.92 $638.53

XZA2 ENERGY 275/70R22.5 J 90059 $32.51 $495.91

XZA1 315/80R22.5 L 47056 $52.83 $5664

XZA 8R19.5 F 60893 $0.19 $334.17

*Prices Subject to Change Without Notice.

Program available

[Tom]

Glad you found something. Just be aware that rush hour traffic at the I76 interchange as you head south can be brutal.